HTC One (M7): Everything We Think We Know

Rumor has it, HTC is preparing to launch its next flagship smartphone in less than a week, a device that was originally thought to be called the HTC M7 but is now believed to be called the HTC One, a rift off of the company’s HTC One Series from last year. So far, we’ve heard a number of rumors about HTC’s rumored flagship including whispers about its features, release date, launch date and more. Here, we take a final look at all of the rumors that have led up to next week’s probably HTC One launch date.

In late last year, right around the time that Samsung Galaxy S4 rumors started cropping up, rumors about an HTC flagship to replace the HTC One X and One X+ started to surface. While the rumors started off slowly, they soon turned into an avalanche and the device that was once known as the HTC M7 became an extremely common name, even before becoming official.

After a down year in 2012 where HTC and its One X were outclassed by Samsung and its Galaxy S3, the company will be looking to rebound in 2013 with a brand new flagship smartphone that it hopes will change its fortunes and offer consumers a fantastic alternative to the iPhone 5, the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the other Android and Windows Phone 8 devices either on or coming to the market.

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From the looks of things, HTC has crafted a phone that, at least on paper, appears to be a contender. The hardware is rumored to include next-generation specifications, the software is said to be a fresh new take on HTC’s past offerings and the carrier options are whispered to be plentiful. All of these have helped to drive the interest in the HTC One to extremely high levels and all eyes will be on HTC when it finally announces the HTC One.

When will it be doing that? Well, from the looks of things, the HTC One will be launched in the near future so it’s now time to take a look at everything we think we know about HTC’s likely flagship smartphone for 2013.

HTC One Release Date

While HTC may not have revealed what it will be announcing on February 19th at launch events in London and in New York City, it’s pretty clear that it’s going to be a big name device. And the only big name device that currently has been rumored out of HTC’s camp is the HTC One.

All signs are pointing to an HTC One launch event on February 19th, and one that should culminate in HTC revealing all of the details about the HTC One, both the big ones and minute.

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One of those bigger details will more than likely be the HTC One’s release date which currently has two rumored dates.

According to the well-sourced HTCSource, the HTC One will be hitting Europe on March 8th. This date was seemingly backed up by a leaked flyer from a retailer in France that exposed March 8th as the likely release date for HTC’s new smartphone. In addition, the HTC One will reportedly landing in the United States later in the month.

Rumors suggest that HTC is targeting March 22nd as the HTC One’s launch date in the United States and it appears that it may be a simultaneous carrier launch like the iPhones. No other date has been rumored.

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So, we think the HTC One will launch next week and arrive on shelves in March, something that could complicate smartphones shoppers plans this weekend.

HTC One Design

It appears that one of the original HTC One design leaks was accurate and the Droid DNA inspired HTC One that we heard about was not the finished product. Instead, they were pre-production testing units.

Instead, the real HTC One is likely going to look like two press images that have leaked out courtesy of the notorious evleaks Twitter account which has been accurate with information in the past.

The supposed HTC One press images depict a phone that looks eerily like the iPhone 5, both in white and in its black colored variant.

It is rumored to have a metal casing, perhaps aluminum as was originally rumored, which would mirror the design of the HTC One X, the company’s flagship from last year. In addition, it looks to have two stereo speakers in the front, a front-facing camera situated in the top right corner, and two soft buttons on the bottom bezel for navigation.

There is also a prominent HTC logo that will evidently appear between those two buttons. We still are unsure of how thin its frame might be but given the trend of smartphones, we expect it to be both light and slender.

The HTC One is supposedly going to come in both black and silver/white and these pictures show both those colors. Helping is the fact that HTC CEO Peter Chou took to the stage with a device that looked very similar to the white and silver HTC One.

So while not confirmed, look for these images to depict the real HTC One smartphone.

HTC One Display

All along the display of the HTC One has been rumored to be 4.7-inches in size with a 1080p display and 400+ pixels-per-inch. Specifically, it’s said to have 468 pixels-per-inch.

The size of the display was seemingly confirmed by an HTC Insider, flavpic, who claims that the device will indeed sport a 4.7-inch display. If true, it means that the display will be the same size as the HTC One X screen and it will also mean that’s likely going to be smaller than most Android flagship smartphones of 2013.

The HTC One is said to boast a 1080p display.

The Sony Xperia Z has already launched with a 5-inch display and the Samsung Galaxy S4 is rumored to have a 4.99-5-inch display. If the HTC One has a 4.7-inch display, it will appeal to those that want a large screen but don’t want to be pushing into Samsung Galaxy Note 2 territory.

At the very least, look for the HTC One to boast one of the best looking screens of the year as the HTC One X had an extremely marvelous display and we expect similar results from HTC this time around as well.

HTC One Camera

Maybe the most exciting HTC One rumor thus far is about its rear camera. The HTC One X had one of the best rear cameras of 2012 and it looks like HTC will be stepping up its game in 2013. How do we know this? Well, HTC itself claims that it will be introducing a brand new rear camera outside of 2012’s Megapixel focus.

According to a rumor from Pocket-lint, the HTC One won’t boast merely a 13MP camera as rumors have suggested. Instead, it will likely feature a 4.3 Ultrapixel camera which uses three 4.3MP sensors to allow the camera to capture better details in photos as well as improve dynamic range and color depth in images.

We’ve seen a possible sample photo from the Ultrapixel camera emerge but it wasn’t spectacular and could have been taken by a QA engineer testing the phone.

The HTC One will also have a front-facing camera, which has been rumored to be 2MP.

HTC One Specs

Of course, those aren’t the only specifications that will be on board the HTC One when it arrives. No, there are a host of other features that will not only help to power it but help to lure consumers in as well.

Rumors state that the HTC One will have a 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor which should offer good battery life and performance for things like gaming and multitasking.

Additionally, it’s supposedly going to come in two storage sizes including a 32GB model and a larger 64GB model for those that need more storage space. A microSD card slot isn’t believed to be on board which means that users will likely be stuck with the on board storage and the cloud.

The battery size is supposed to check in at 2,300 mAh which is bigger than HTC’s previous HTC One batteries. Battery life on the HTC One X and HTC One X+ was one of the weaker spots so look for HTC to have remedied that in the HTC One.

And while not rumored, the HTC One could sport wireless charging capabilities. We saw HTC included built-in wireless charging with the Droid DNA for Verizon so it could do the same with its new device.

HTC One Name

This is what HTC Sense 5.0 could look like.

Previously, the HTC M7 was thought to be the actual name of the HTC One. HTC CEO Peter Chou took the stage and had his employees chanting ‘M7’ at a company party leading many to believe that it could be given that name at retail.

However, Chou also had them chanting ‘HTC One’ and it appears that HTC One will be the name given to the HTC M7 when it launches.

The name appears to be aimed at keeping the HTC One Series brand alive. The HTC One Series was HTC’s trio of devices that launched last year and included the HTC One X, HTC One S and the HTC One V.

This time around, it appears there is only one smartphone, at least for now.

HTC One Software

Right now, the HTC One is heavily rumored to have Android Jelly Bean on board. That’s not surprising considering Android 4.1 Jelly Bean has been out since July. However, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, the most current software, has been out since November and as of right now, only the Nexus devices have the update.

We imagine that Android 4.2 Jelly Bean will likely be the software on board the HTC One, given the device’s status and the age of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. Whatever the case may be, it looks like Android won’t be the only software on board.

Rumors and leaks suggest that the HTC One will be coming stock with HTC Sense 5.0, the new version of HTC Sense that we’ve seen leak out several times in the past few weeks.

The software appears to be a drastic shift from previous versions of the software in terms of looks and features. Already, we’ve seen the new Weather widget and lock screen emerge and we’ve also see what appears to be a Windows Phone live tiles look, something that is much different than previous versions of Sense.

HTC One Carriers

The HTC One X only came to AT&T’s 4G LTE network, something that arguably hindered its success against the Samsung Galaxy S3. It appears that HTC won’t be repeating the same mistake with the HTC One as the device looks slated to touch down on at least three big name carriers in the U.S.

Right now, the device is pegged for launches on AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile on March 22nd. The device will likely arrive on the 4G LTE networks for AT&T and Sprint and it’s rumored to be 4G LTE ready for T-Mobile as well.

Obviously, one big name is missing in the group and that’s Verizon. Verizon’s HTC One has been rumored but it likely won’t make an appearance on March 22nd.

It’s thought that the carrier doesn’t want to launch it took close to the Droid DNA, HTC’s other flagship, which hit Verizon’s 4G LTE network back in November. So while a Verizon HTC One isn’t out of the question, it’s not expected in March.

HTC One Price

Finally, the HTC One price. As expected, rumors peg the price of HTC’s flagship as costing $199.99 across the board for a 32GB model. Those looking for more storage space will likely have to dole out $299.99 for the 64GB HTC One.

That pricing is again said to be across all carriers, even T-Mobile, which plans on shifting to unsubsidized-only plans starting at some point this year, likely with the launch of the iPhone.